Comcast Today: Xfinity to Pass 8 Million Hotspots

That's a lot of wifi.

Let’s face it, griping about Comcast is pretty much one of our national sports these days. And we’re not going to regret. Giant multibillion-dollar corporations are low on our list of people and institutions deserving sympathy.

Still, if you’re an Xfinity internet subscriber, life could be worse. Here’s a press release from this morning:

Comcast Cable’s Xfinity WiFi network will reach eight million hotspots by the end of 2014, covering 19 of the country’s 30 largest cities with fast and reliable wireless Internet access.

Comcast estimates that nearly 200 million out-of-home sessions have been initiated on the Xfinity WiFi network so far this year, a 700 percent increase from the same period last year. According to Cisco, 88 percent of all U.S. data traffic on mobile and portable devices will travel over Wi-Fi by 2018.

“Wireless access is increasingly important to our customers, and we are building a network that not only meets today’s needs but also stays ahead of tomorrow’s demands,” said Marcien Jenckes, Executive Vice President of Consumer Services for Comcast Cable. “Xfinity WiFi is a reliable, fast resource for millions of customers who want access to the Internet, anytime, anywhere. We’ll add millions more hotspots this year in the places where our customers live and work.”

And it’s true: In recent weeks, we’ve noticed that it’s easier than ever to find an Xfinity hot spot in enter Center City Philadelphia, making it easy to pop open a laptop and simply start working. Here’s a map of a Center CityWest neighborhood, for example:

Screen Shot 2014-04-30 at 11.18.20 AM